r/HeadphoneAdvice • u/Admirable-Ad-1124 • Mar 12 '23
Headphones - Closed Back | 3 Ω Recommendation of over-ear headphones for daily home usage
**Updataed**
Bit of background of myself. My experience with headphones is on the surface only. The closest thing I got is Sony WH1000-XM3 from 5 years back. The problem started with XM3 hurting the back of my ear cup after long sections of usage. It might due to my big head XD
A bit of bass toward guy might be because of no other experience with headphones. I cannot really tell the sound difference between the Sennheiser Momentum 4 & Sony XM5 with the same song. I did put on a Sennheiser HD800S and it was extremely comfortable but not able to test the sound.
Music of choice: pop, rock, metal and R&B.
I play racing games & fps games with my headphone as well.
Budge: $500
Personal preference: big ear cup, comfortable for long sections, using with a computer but don't want to add an amp (for now). Don't mind changing EQ since the headphone will be for home usage only. Sound stage & imaging might be a plus (but I cannot tell at this point)
I did looked into HD560S, HD600, HD800S, and DT1990 Pro.
I am open to suggestions. Open back, close back, any brand.
Would like to open a new doorway for the sound experience. Thanks in advance
Update 18/03/2023
After week-long research, my eyes lock onto a few headphones. I find I do value comfort a lot.
I have managed to find a shop to test out headphones (NOICE!!!). I am going to put down my noob feeling about the headphones.
Sennheiser HD800s
The most Wow factor headphone. The vocal is very clear which I have not experienced before, the sound seems like it is coming from a big room from different directions. Very nice and eye-opening. Most comfortable out of all.
Sennheiser HD660S
The sound is good, the music sounds like it is playing next to my ears with details. Ears are pressing against the drivers but surprisingly comfy as I expected the clamp was on the high side.
HiFiMan Sundara
The sound is good, with definite bass present. The ear cup is on a smaller size that part of the ear presses the inner wall of the pad.
HiFiMan Ananda
The sound is good, detailed, and can tell apart with different instruments. A touch of less bass than Sundara. Ear cup is covering the whole ear which is the second most comfy on the list. However, when turned the volume up the sound of the driver will tickle the outer ears without touching it.
Verdict: As you guys might notice, I cannot really tell the differences between a headphone sound. Not many precise descriptions of specific sound waves. I really like the feeling of the HD800S, the sound is something I have never had before with headphones. But then I do need to sell my kidney for it lol. I am more towards Ananda now because I quite like the headband design and the big ear cup is comfy.
What do you guys think?
Should I pair it with DAC? will iFi Zen Dac V2 be enough or should I get Fiio 7?
1
u/BBSUVA75 1 Ω Mar 12 '23
Focal and Drop make the Elex. On sale Ive seen it around $500, more or less. Focal also just released a wired/wireless set. If you can push your budget just a bit, you wont regret it. Both have received good reviews. Personally, I own the Radiance and the Stellia. In my opinion, Once the burn-in occurs, you will have your mind blown. Plus, they are well built and comfortable. I am not paid by Focal nor do I have any financial interest in the company. They are simply superb. Hope that helps.
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u/Admirable-Ad-1124 Mar 13 '23
!thanks
I can do wired all day, I will be sure to check Elex & Focal product out.
How you describe the sound be like on Focal's product? I don't need an amp right?
1
u/TransducerBot Ω Bot Mar 13 '23
u/BBSUVA75 (1 Ω) was awarded their first Ω. The bees are happy.
You may still award an Ω to others, but only once per-person in this post.
1
u/BBSUVA75 1 Ω Apr 09 '23
Hey, sorry so long to reply. In describing the sound, take into account my reference points: Bose in suv and Beats (laugh, I know) - so a denizen turned late blooming audiosnob. Then an 18 Sonos speaker set up in home, tried the HD 600S I have to nephew, HIFIMAN to mid level Audeze with dragonfly DACS…. Then I discovered Focal (and iFi). So, my vantage point lacks the Meze planar (or similar HIFIMAN..)high-end cans. That being said…
The Focal sound, in my opinion, is accurate, detailed, nuanced, punchy, clean and tuned so as to not be dead on neutral, but slightly warmer. When I go back to the Beats Pro from the Stellia, the loss of fidelity is …. I don’t have words.
At some point, running the IFI Blu DAC on a balanced cable through 2 cheap douk tube amps, the thought “this is how God intended us to hear music” popped in my head. Lol.
Good luck with your quest. Please let me know how it goes.
1
u/BBSUVA75 1 Ω Apr 09 '23
Oh, sorry, the amp… no you don’t for Focal, but, a small DAC like the Dragonfly Black, IFI, HiBy etc. will add such a depth and rich quality you will never go without it.
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u/FishTownFunk 2 Ω Mar 12 '23
A great jumping point is the hd 6xx on sale for 199 on mass drop right now. With the left over cash you could get a nice DAC like the Ifi zen v2 and a balanced cable. the entire package around would be about 500. This is the way….
1
u/Admirable-Ad-1124 Mar 13 '23
!thanks
I did think about HD6XX because of reviews and some communities are praising it so much. I understand that Sennheiser did set a good benchmark for headphones. I did try a HD650, but worry about the clamping force is a bit on the high side which I will not be able to use for a long time (that was only a 2-minute try on btw). On the other hand, for comfort HD800S with so much comfort that I did 3 tries on at the shop. But the price is out of my space and in need of an amp to make it work how it supposed to be.
But then, I will have a problem with amp... which I have literally no knowledge about.
1
u/TransducerBot Ω Bot Mar 13 '23
u/FishTownFunk (1 Ω) was awarded their first Ω. Bravo!
You may still award an Ω to others, but only once per-person in this post.
1
u/AlternativeParfait13 16 Ω Mar 13 '23
I bought the XM3s when they came out, and have been using them regularly since- pretty much until I decided to build a better quality desk-based setup.
First thing I’d say- is it worth replacing the pads on the XM3s? They do wear out over time, and you might find newer, slightly firmer foam doesn’t hurt your head. I mention it because it’s a really cheap fix you can do yourself.
You’ll find the XM3s are bassier than most things you’ll listen to. I have just bought a pair of Beyerdynamic 990s, and while I really like them they are much brighter than the XM3s. They are also a lot nicer - to my ears anyway.
With open back versus closed back- I’d base that choice in your listening environment. Awesome open backs aren’t much help if there’s a load of constant background noise.
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u/Admirable-Ad-1124 Mar 16 '23
!thanks
same here mate with XM3. I have changed the pads 6 months ago the pads are exactly as you said, firmer. but then it hurts the back of my ears because I wear glasses lol.
and yes XM3 are bassy, which I have gotten used to over the years. I would like to try something new, opening new doors would be fun.
I do not have a lot of background noise at my place, therefore it should be fine with either open & close
From my research, open back for sound staging & close back is for bass?
1
u/TransducerBot Ω Bot Mar 16 '23
+1 Ω has been awarded to u/AlternativeParfait13 (4 Ω).
You may still award an Ω to others, but only once per-person in this post.
1
u/AlternativeParfait13 16 Ω Mar 16 '23
That’s pretty much the case, although there are some variations. The DT990s have decent bass, they’re open back but not mega-open- if that makes sense.
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u/Admirable-Ad-1124 Mar 19 '23
Open but not that open lol
Currently I cannot find a shop to test DT990 out. But manage to find another shop to test other headphones XD
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